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Lenovo shares hammered by Sony rumours

(City A.M. (UK) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) SHARES in computer maker Lenovo slumped more than 16 per cent yesterday after a weekend media report said the firm was in talks with Sony about a possible joint venture to buy Sony's loss-making Vaio PC business outside Japan.

Speculation about the Sony joint venture comes after a hectic two weeks of deal making by Lenovo, with the Chinese company launching $5.2bn worth of overseas acquisitions, partly funded by its own stock.

Lenovo said last week that it will buy Google's Motorola Mobility handset unit for $2.9bn (£1.77bn), and last month it bid for IBM's lowend server business.

Lenovo declined to comment yesterday. Sony has said the media report is inaccurate, but acknowledged it was looking at various possibilities for Vaio.